Rugby, Beer and Dog Show a Success!

After the success of the inaugural Touch Rugby and Beer Festival last year, the event this year was hotly anticipated. With ten teams signed up to play, and the addition of a dog show, it promised to be a fun day for the family. Saturday 10 September dawned grey and rainy. However, an overheard comment from a rain-soaked supporter – ‘what’s rugby without a little rain?’ – seemed to become the mantra for the day, as players defied the wet and mud and slid into spectacular tries.

The Parents’ Association kicked off the afternoon with a busy dog show, judged by Naughty Mutt Nice owner Aspen Weatherburn. Over 20 dogs entered the five categories: Gorgeous lurcher Zac won 'Most Handsome Dog'; Beautiful golden setter Dory, owned by the Simmonds-Goodings family, won 'Prettiest Bitch'; Burt, entered by Mr Rose's daughter, won 'Dog Most Like Its Owner'; and Dr Hughes's dog Willow took victory for both 'Best Trick' and 'Waggiest Tail'. Dory was awarded Best in Show. A buzzing cake stall was also on offer, as was a barbecue and snack bar.

The touch tournament saw three staff teams take on leavers from 2012, 2015, 2016, the 1980s, parents, current pupils and even a community team, made up of Shiplake parents, Old Vikings and willing volunteers. It was a very diverse offering on the pitch and that only served to add to the excitement – touch rugby is a brilliant sport for all ages.

Leavers 2016 I, led by Phoebe Eggar, and Mr Mallins’ team were victorious in their respective groups. They went through to take on the runners-up of the opposite groups, Staff Tall Plus Arney and Leavers 2016 II, led by Jonnie Reed. The semi-finals saw the two Leavers 2016 teams play each other and the two staff teams play each other.

The semi-finals were incredibly close, with a 'drop-out' style golden try required in the staff game as they were still drawing at full time. In a surprising turn of events it was the runners-up from the group stages that both won their place in the final. Leavers 2016 II, led by Jonnie Reed, were to battle it out against Staff Tall Plus Arney.

It may only have been a ten-minute final, but it was all to play for: every minute was filled with tension and near-tries, and the spectators gathered around to watch. The Leavers 2016 II were announced the winners, scraping victory by three points to one. Jonnie commented: ‘it was a tough match! We ended up taking on a staff team, so it was even more imperative that we won! Most of us haven’t done any sport or working out all summer and it was a bit of a shock to the system to return to racing around a school sports field, but a brilliant day!’

The rain did nothing to dampen the spirits of the spectators; family and friends braved the autumnal weather to cheer on their respective teams. The day was not just about rugby. For the more daring of attendees, an inflatable bungee run and gladiator joust proved popular. For the slightly older attendee, a range of beers were available - provided by Old Viking Alasdair Large of Keystone Brewery - and all of them were amply sampled!

The raffle raised over £115 for the Sports Tour fund, which will go towards helping budding athletes participate in the international sports tours. Generous donations from Lawrence Menswear, The Baskerville and Laithwaites helped make this possible; thank you to them for their support. Congratulations to Philip Roberts, who was the proud winner of two tickets to see England take on Fiji at Twickenham!

Spectators and players alike had a brilliant day. Organiser Chelsi Challis said: ‘I was so pleased with how the day went! The tournament was busy – it’s definitely building year on year – and it was so lovely to see a great range of people there. We even had a team from the local community. Thank you to everyone who came along and battled the elements to make the day a great success.’